Against all odds

Thursday

Jan 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM

LODI - The story behind the small restaurant tucked within a miniature strip mall in Lodi is a stirring one. Its owner, Andy Dao, overcame daunting difficulties in his early years, managed to rebuild his life and ultimately opened his very own eatery about a year ago.

The Record

LODI - The story behind the small restaurant tucked within a miniature strip mall in Lodi is a stirring one. Its owner, Andy Dao, overcame daunting difficulties in his early years, managed to rebuild his life and ultimately opened his very own eatery about a year ago.

As it turns out, the food at Bamboo Basil Noodles & Grill is pretty impressive, too.

On a recent Saturday night, three of us trekked up to Lodi from Stockton to sample Bamboo Basil's authentic Vietnamese cuisine. I'm no expert on Vietnamese cooking, but I'm about to play one for the review, and the verdict is very positive.

Bamboo Basil is small, yet bright and welcoming. Several flat-screen televisions are situated around the restaurant and a large, attractive aquarium at the front adds a sea of tranquility to the room.

The walls are lined with bamboo, with Chinese lanterns providing the light.

We were greeted promptly and cheerfully upon our arrival and led to our table. Service was friendly, and the food we ordered arrived quickly and was fresh, delicious and light.

The restaurant's attention to detail was evident when our server brought a pitcher of ice water for refills. The bottom of the pitcher was blanketed by slices of cucumber and fresh orange, the sort of small touch that adds to a place's appeal.

Our first inclination was to order the crispy fried egg rolls ($6) but our server preached against conventionality. She suggested, instead, the spring rolls, which were the same price. Among the several options, we chose our spring rolls stuffed with shrimp and charbroiled pork.

We were very glad we followed the advice. The spring rolls, served cold, consisted of the shrimp and pork, along with fresh romaine lettuce, mint leaves and vermicelli noodles wrapped in rice paper. The rolls were accompanied by sweet peanut dipping sauce, similar to the satay sauce served in Thai cuisine.

We also shared two Vietnamese dishes: a medium order of the rare steak pho (noodle soup, $8) and an order of the charbroiled meat, shrimp and egg roll vermicelli noodles ($10).

The flavorful pho, which warmed us on a chilly night, was garnished with cilantro, green and white onions, bean sprouts, basil, jalapeņo peppers and lime. The ample bowl of vermicelli included various vegetables and sweet, tangy fish sauce that provided much of the flavor. Make sure you mix it up well.

Bamboo Basil also offers a variety of Chinese items: several fried rice dishes, chow mein and chow fun, and walnut chicken among them. We tried the walnut chicken ($10), which arrived with a generous number of nuggets that were breaded and fried, but not at all greasy. We also ordered the barbecue pork chow fun ($9), which tasted suspiciously like barbecue pork chow fun at our favorite Chinese restaurant.

The restaurant also serves a variety of appealing beverages, including a delicious and refreshing coconut shake ($3.50).

Our appetites were satisfied before we could order dessert. But if you save room, you have two choices: fried banana ice cream ($5) or 3 Color Drink, which the menu describes as Asian Jell-O, mung beans and jackfruit pieces with a splash of coconut milk.

Based on everything else we enjoyed at Bamboo Basil, dessert sounds like a good bet - next time.